Paris
by klutzysunshine
Summary: Set post "Family First". After a quick trip to Israel, Tony and Tali reunite with an injured but still alive Ziva in Paris.
**I don't own NCIS nor will I ever. No copyright infringement intended.**

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After Tony and Tali stopped in Israel and paid a very informative visit to Orli, they headed straight to Paris to reunite with the woman they both loved more than anything. "You excited to see Ima, baby?" he asked his daughter.

The toddler clapped and started babbling. He ruffled her hair and then kissed the top of her head. "We'll have a lot to say to her, won't we?" Tony's heart started pounding in his chest, suddenly terrified that Ziva wasn't really alive, that he had been lied to (again). Tali responded by continuing to babble and grinned up at her father. With shaking hands, he knocked on the hotel room door several times and let out a gasp when Ziva opened it.

Clearly very injured (bruises and burns covered her body), her face lit up when she laid eyes on them. "You're here," she whispered tearfully.

"You're still here," Tony whispered back as he led Tali into the room. And then everything finally caught up to him. Careful to avoid Ziva's injuries, he pulled her into his arms and started whispering, "I love you" over and over again, his breath hitching with relieved sobs.

"I love you too," she whispered back.

"Ima!" Tali shouted.

The two of them pulled apart and looked down at their clearly impatient daughter. "Yes, Ima's here," Ziva assured her, wiping tears off her face.

"Sit down," Tony encouraged, herding her carefully over to the bed. "Tali, be careful with Ima, okay? She doesn't feel very good. Can you do that?" Tali nodded and then held her arms out. Tony picked her up and gently deposited her in Ziva's arms before sitting down next to the two of them. "How badly are you hurt?" he inquired.

"Some minor burns. I twisted my ankle trying to get to Tali and you can see the bruises. It could have been worse so I'm not complaining. I'm just so happy she's safe." Ziva's heart twisted with fear every time she thought about the harm that could have befallen them both.

Tony sighed and then decided to get to the bottom of it. He had been so bogged down by grief and anger that he didn't even have it in him to yell at her. "Why didn't you tell me you were pregnant? Ziva, we have a daughter." Words escaped him.

"I regret not telling you every single day of my life, and I'll have to live with it for the rest of our lives, but we were both in danger. I didn't want you either of you to pay for my mistakes," she told him, wishing she could Tali back and forth.

"Aba," she whimpered.

"What's wrong? It's been a long week, hasn't it? We've all been put through the ringer?" Tony opened up her suitcase and ruffled through it until he found her stuffed dog. Tali lit up when she saw it.

"How have you been handling fatherhood when it was thrust upon you so suddenly?" a curious Ziva questioned as Tali crawled off her lap and started playing on the bed.

Tony laughed. "Well, it's not exactly easy but I'm sure you know that already. Palmer was the one who convinced her to eat when she refused what I got her. My father is thrilled he's a grandfather so he was helping out for a few days. But Ziva? I love her already. I never knew I could feel this way before." Something inside him permanently shifted the instant he saw her for the first time. It was overwhelming.

She could only nod. "I understand completely. When I held her in my arms for the first time, my world suddenly came into focus for the first time. I'm sorry you missed so much of her life."

"But I'm here now and I'm not going anywhere," Tony vowed. "Ziva, I want to spend the rest of my life with you both."

"I want that myself so badly, Tony."

"Glad we're in agreement then. The others will be thrilled you're not actually dead. It's been a rough week," he admitted, his voice breaking.

She reached up and wiped the tears off his face before kissing him again. "I'm sure it was," Ziva softly told him, glancing back to check on their now sleeping daughter.

"I had a meltdown in the middle of the fucking bullpen," Tony admitted. "It felt like there was something missing - something inside me just broke - when I heard you were dead."

"I apologize for that but it was our only option at the time. I knew you'd keep her safe until we were reunited and that was what kept me afloat."

He grabbed her hand not covered in bruises and squeezed it just as Tali awakened. She opened her eyes and beamed at her parents. "She's half of both of us. That's insane, Ziva."

Ziva snorted. "She's a miniature version of you already even though she looks like me. It's infuriatingly adorable."

Tali pulled herself up and leaned against Tony. His heart soared with love as he watched the two most important women in his life interact. "I agree with that."

"Have you been good for Aba?" Ziva asked Tali.

Tali nodded. "Aba nice," she proclaimed.

"I'm happy. I bet you had a lot of fun too, huh? We're going to have a lot more soon because we're all going to explore Paris."

"Maybe look for a place to live."

Ziva wrapped her arms around him and Tali. "That sounds like a wonderful idea, Tony." The two of them couldn't wait to make up for lost time.

"The team will be thrilled you're still alive. I think Gibbs suspects because he didn't grieve like I was expecting him to. And you should have seen their reaction when they found out about Tali - they eavesdropped on my conversation with Orli then just gave up and knocked on the door because they wanted to meet her. Palmer's been a big help when I needed it or had questions."

Ziva winced as one of her injuries started throbbing. "I'm glad you both had the support you needed."

"You should lie down. I'll keep Tali calm when you nap, Ziva," Tony worriedly informed her, checking over her injuries again to make sure she wasn't injured more than she was saying.

"Why don't you both nap with me?" she suggested.

His lips curled up into a smile. "That sounds perfect. Come on, baby." The two of them laid down but left a space for Tali in the middle.

"This is definitely much different than the last time we were in Paris," Ziva recalled, beaming at the two of them.

"It's better this time. At least we aren't dancing around our feelings anymore. And in case you don't know it, I still love you, Ziva David."

"And I love you, Anthony DiNozzo."

Tali shrieked and her parents laughed at her antics. "Aba and Ima need to sleep and so do toddlers who want to play during an airplane flight."

Unconvinced, Tali only stared at them. "That was too easy, of course."

"Another lesson I've learned in the past week. Almost everything's a battle." But he adored fatherhood already and he couldn't wait to see Tali (and maybe a few more kids - that was something he and Ziva had to discuss along with a host of other topics) grow up.

Ziva reached over and embraced Tony's hand. "Honesty from here on out," she vowed. "Everything will be on the table."

"Agreed."

But for now, the recently reunited family of three decided to just enjoy their nap together. They had a future together and all the time in the world so nothing mattered except for them.


End file.
